I Lied in Visa Center

curated by Kateryna Filyuk


Ana Blagojevic (RS/IT), Andrii Dostliev (PL/UA), Lia Dostlieva (PL/UA), Alevtina Kakhidze (UA), Ola Lanko (NL/UA), Elena Mazzi in collaboration with Enrica Camporesi (IT), Stefan Milosavljevic (RS/IT)


artists’ bios


I Lied in Visa Center ponders over dramatic alteration of personal memories and one’s identity triggered by displacement and forced departure. While Polish sociologist Zygmunt Bauman introduces in his writings theoretical concept of fluid identity, displaced people in every corner of the world practice it, being physically cut off the material manifestations of their personal stories in the form of documents, photographs and official records. Unrooted they construct their fragmented memories from scratch frequently using this forced oblivion to start over and arrive to the brighten version of oneself. Invited artists will deal with either personal or estranged experience of that kind on both emotional and intellectual levels, trying to tap into altered memories of displaced.

Two different but not necessarily opposite narratives emerge within the show oscillating between altering the past and revisiting it. In both cases, the exploration of the past rebounds the subject and creates a space for reflection. However, as most of the works tries to stress, there is no universal solution, neither there is black or white, ultimate truth or lie.

While most of the narratives about displaced and refugees focus on their misfortunes and problems their arrival cause in Europe, I Lied in Visa Center investigates the psychological condition of the newcomers and taps into their personal memories and the way they affect their current situation. Describing his experience, the asylum seeker in the video  Performing the self – the interview by Elena Mazzi in collaboration with Enrica Camporesi says “it implies entering a new space, in a fresh, new zone, maybe belonging to someone else, in a new territory where everything moves: words pass, thinking is a convoy, imagery flows, metaphors slip, the page drifts, eyes wander…”


#displacement #memories # identity #fluididentity #roots #oblivion #liquidsociety #groupshow